Al Faiella was the deputy mayor of Newarks Economic Development for
20 years. How much has his work helped that city? BTW, Faiella, who
is Asbury Partners' attorney and is leading our redevelopment, was
forced out of NEDC. Why should we think he can do better here? Read
on (Village Voice).
Neighborhoods
Close-Up on Newark, New Jersey
by Tad Hendrickson
January 25th, 2006 5:28 PM
When will fortune rain on the ruddy bricks of Newark?
photo: Holly Northrop/hnorthrop.com
The summer of love was hardly the case for Newark in 1967. It was
the scene for one of the biggest and most destructive riots in the
U.S. history. The city exploded on July 14, detonated by police
brutality, urban decay, lack of political representation, and social
forces outside the citylike the Vietnam War and the human rights
movement. Twenty-three people died during three days of rioting,
with an estimated $10 million (more than $58 million in today's
dollars) in property damages.
Nearly 40 years later the Brick City has moved on from those dark
days, but like Detroit (whose riot was six days later) and unlike
urban centers like New York and Philadelphia, it hasn't seen an
economic boom in the last 10 years. Those looking for prime examples
of urban decay can find it throughout Newark, in the crumbling
buildings, signs for businesses long closed, and vacant lots.
That is not to say that the city of 278,500 is still a war zone.
Opened in 1997, the $187 million New Jersey Performance Arts Center
(NJPAC) has quickly positioned itself as one of the finest
facilities in the world, with a wide variety of performers passing
through. The New Jersey Devils' new $310 million arena is under
construction across the street from City Hall as well. There are
other signs of change too, with people moving here who are looking
for an urban living environment without the hefty price tag.
Only six miles from New York City, the city's decline and cheap
rents has long made it seemingly appealing to intrepid urban
pioneers priced out of NYC but unwilling to leave the area. It has
the infrastructure to support a renaissance, but political
corruption, bad luck, limited resources, and poor judgment have been
stumbling blocks yet to be surmounted.
"It'd be nice if the gentrification of Hoboken and Jersey City
reached all the way to the end of the PATH," says Cindy Byram, who
grew up in Newark and remembers vigilantes driving around with
shotguns sticking out of their cars in '67. "Maybe it will do that
if the economy stays strong enough, but we keep waiting for it to
happen."
While public projects like NJPAC and the hockey arena are touted as
bright spots, the emergence of the vibrant Ironbound neighborhood
has injected new life into the city. Hemmed in by railroad tracks
(hence the name), this old manufacturing and residential
neighborhood features the largest concentration of Portuguese people
outside Portugal as well as a large Brazilian population. Adjacent
to Newark's Penn Station and downtown, it has the neighborhood feel
of an ethnic enclaveone that has yet to be annexed by
gentrification or commercialization. It's more unique and multi-
faceted than any amount of civic planning could create.
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